Chapter 719 – Xie Ling
"Little Senior Brother, Brother Cheng said you could help me, so I came to ask for your guidance."
The young disciple spoke very politely.
Standing beside him, Cheng Mo puffed up his chest and nodded:
"This kid's name is Xie Ling, and like me, he's from Gen Prefecture."
"Though Gen Prefecture is big, and the Cheng and Xie families don't have much to do with each other, since we're from the same region and both studying in Qian Prefecture, that makes us hometown folks. He needs help, so of course I'll lend a hand…"
He gave Xie Ling a firm pat on the shoulder.
Xie Ling smiled gratefully.
Compared to Cheng Mo, he was clearly much shorter—standing beside him like a loyal little brother.
Mo Hua asked curiously,
"What's the matter?"
Xie Ling replied,
"I took on a few bounty missions to capture a rogue cultivator, but that guy cultivates advanced fire-element spells. His power's overwhelming—we couldn't take him down."
This kind of spiritual tool was far too expensive for most rogue cultivators.
Mo Hua understood, took a sip of cool plum nectar, and slowly nodded:
"Got it. Come back in three days."
"Little Senior Brother, you…" Xie Ling started.
"Go out and try to buy some fire-resistant spiritual tools," Mo Hua cut in. "Either the grade is too low, the quality isn't up to par, the fire resistance is lacking… or they're just absurdly expensive. Not worth it."
"For example, the Bluewater Armor. High cost, but it can defend against both physical force and magical attacks—especially effective against fire-element burns."
"But still—whether someone's cultivated properly, whether they've built their foundation…"
"And then you've got other accessories—Coldwater Jade, Fire-Repelling Pendants, Fireproof Hairpins…"
Of course, all of this excluded Mo Hua himself.
"Besides, if you just buy a Bluewater Armor that only protects against fire and nothing else, then it's kind of… meh."
Xie Ling looked troubled, glancing toward Mo Hua and asking softly:
"Aren't there other types of gear? Lighter, more fashionable, easier to carry? But I suppose those are only good for daily wear—in real combat, they're no substitute for true protective armor."
"Even if you study water-element spells like Water Armor Technique, unless your cultivation is deep, you won't be able to rely on them when it matters."
When it comes to fire-element defense…
Master Gu nodded,
"For armor-type spiritual tools, it must first be armor—protection comes first. Everything else is secondary."
Mo Hua had a question:
"So Bluewater Armor is all-purpose defense, but with a very high fire-resistance on top?"
If this were a battlefield formation, he could still rely on formation plates—use water to extinguish fire or earth to resist fire.
Mo Hua had an idea and went to discuss it with Master Gu.
"This is the foundational approach to forging standard spiritual armor," Master Gu explained.
Cheng Mo slapped Xie Ling's shoulder again,
"Hurry and thank Little Senior Brother!"
"When it comes to defending against fire spells, Water Armor Technique is ideal—but none of us have water-element roots, so we can't learn it."
"It's fine," Mo Hua added with a grin, "They've got plenty of spirit stones."
Although Xie Ling looked like a sidekick, he clearly came from a prestigious family—and wasn't lacking in money.
Fireproof Hairpin.
Master Gu continued:
"These types of spiritual tools are more complicated to forge. If customized, the process becomes even more intricate, the cost goes up, and so does the final price…"
Seeing Mo Hua's expression, Master Gu called out gently:
"Young Master?"
"After all, one is full armor, the other's just cloth robes."
After Xie Ling left, Mo Hua found himself lost in thought.
He was momentarily stunned by something.
Then, as Master Gu continued listing options, Mo Hua snapped out of it and smiled:
"Just remembered something. Please continue, Master Gu…"
Xie Ling and his group were most concerned about getting burned by fire spells—so fire-resistant defensive spiritual tools were clearly the best option.
"These two are the most commonly used," Master Gu said. "And our Lone Mountain Forge has produced both models before."
Mo Hua sighed internally, but then his thoughts shifted:
"I wonder how Mother is doing in Tongxian City these days… Managing the dining hall—must be tough."
He remembered how, back in the Tongxian Sect, he used to draw formation diagrams to earn spirit stones. The first gift he ever bought for his mother was a barely first-grade Fireproof Hairpin.
That memory settled Master Gu's mind.
"The Water Armor Robe has slightly lower cost, is lighter, and mainly defends against fire spells. But in terms of overall protection, it's definitely inferior to the Bluewater Armor."
"Always start with general utility before layering on specialized functions."
"Tools with extremely narrow effects—some forges used to make them, but because they don't suit the general cultivator market, they rarely sell. The forge ends up losing money, and eventually no one wants to make them anymore…"
Master Gu glanced at Mo Hua:
"Young Master, are you planning to…"
"Yes." Mo Hua nodded. "We'll make this kind of specialized spiritual tool."
"It'll be easier to forge, lower cost, and faster to produce."
"Besides, since it's a customized tool, we're not looking for perfection in everything. As long as it excels at one thing, that's enough."
Master Gu thought about it, found the approach reasonable, and nodded:
"This is for the best. We'll follow Young Master's plan."
Mo Hua spent some time designing the forging formation diagram, combining formation logic with some of Master Gu's old crafting blueprints.
The two refined the details over half a day.
Then Master Gu returned to begin work.
Three days later, Xie Ling came back to find Mo Hua.
Mo Hua told him everything was arranged, but the spiritual tools would take some time to forge.
With Mo Hua's confirmation, Xie Ling finally relaxed.
About eight days later, Master Gu completed five Fire-Repelling Robes, following Mo Hua's design. Mo Hua then drew the appropriate formations on each robe.
These robes had no other functions—only fire resistance.
But their ability to ward off fire was refined to the extreme.
Mo Hua handed over all five Fire-Repelling Robes to Xie Ling.
Xie Ling accepted them solemnly and headed out during the ten-day break to apprehend the fire-specialized rogue cultivator.
Two Days Later – End of the Ten-Day Break
Xie Ling came to see Mo Hua, bringing along four others.
As they stood before Mo Hua, they all respectfully bowed and chorused:
"Thank you, Little Senior Brother!"
Xie Ling was thrilled:
"We wore the Fire-Repelling Dao Robes you gave us, Little Senior Brother, and fought that rogue cultivator. No matter how fierce his fire-element spells were, we weren't afraid at all. At most, we felt a slight burning sting. Compared to before… it was like heaven and earth!"
"In the end, we managed to subdue that scoundrel!"
The others looked just as excited.
Though they were from the same intake as Mo Hua, their innate talent and capabilities weren't particularly outstanding—at least not within the Great Void Sect, where geniuses were everywhere.
In truth, each of them was considered a prodigy within the great clans of the Nine Provinces.
But once they came to Qian Prefecture, where prodigies clustered like stars in the sky, they were no longer quite so "prodigious."
Not completely average—but relatively "mediocre."
The pressure on them was enormous.
Unlike Mo Hua, who could calmly live his "one top-six bottom" life without a care in the world.
These genius disciples had to constantly strive for excellence.
They carried their families' hopes and expectations on their shoulders. They were expected to learn everything—and learn it well. No area could be neglected.
But cultivation at the Great Void Sect required extensive study and training, which consumed a lot of time.
So any bounty tasks they took on progressed slowly.
Especially for those who were raised in comfort within their clans—gifted but unused to conflict—who had little experience in capturing rogue cultivators.
Like Xie Ling's group—even after three years in the sect, their practical experience with hunting down rogue cultivators was limited, and their skills were still rather raw.
Worse yet, the opponents they faced were battle-hardened, cunning outlaws.
Initial failures were inevitable.
But now, with the help of the Fire-Repelling Dao Robes, they had successfully defeated a "strong enemy," completed their mission, earned battle experience, and gained merit.
Naturally, they were elated.
To show their thanks, they treated Mo Hua to chicken drumsticks.
According to Brother Cheng Mo, one of Little Senior Brother's favorite foods was chicken legs—and when asking him for help, you absolutely had to "offer up" a drumstick.
Mo Hua munched on his drumstick while casually chatting with Xie Ling and the others.
Mid-conversation, he suddenly asked curiously:
"Does your Xie Clan from Gen Prefecture have any inheritance of its own?"
After all, Situ Jian had inherited the Blazing Flame Sword Art, Yang Qianjun wielded the Yang Family Spear Technique, and Cheng Mo—also from Gen Prefecture—used the Mountain-Cleaving Axe Method.
But Xie Ling…
Mo Hua honestly couldn't tell what his specialty was.
Xie Ling nodded and replied,
"Gen Prefecture is mountainous. Our clan's inheritance is geomancy—surveying the terrain and veins of spiritual energy, determining burial sites, deciphering the living and the dead, and passing down secret Feng Shui formations..."
"Secret Yin-Yang Feng Shui formations?!" Mo Hua's eyes widened. "You know those kinds of formations?"
Xie Ling looked embarrassed,
"I don't have much talent in formations. I never learned the full techniques—just the basics: sensing qi, mountain concealment, tomb placement, spirit-suppression..."
"Sensing qi? Mountain concealment? Tomb placement? Spirit-suppression?" Mo Hua echoed in confusion.
Xie Ling explained,
"Sensing heaven-and-earth energies, borrowing mountain terrain to hide one's presence, reading Feng Shui to determine burial spots, preventing corpse transformations, exorcising malevolent spirits… and more advanced techniques—using death to sever fate, altering destiny itself…"
Mo Hua's pupils trembled. His heart skipped.
Using death to sever life, altering destiny...
Xie Ling scratched his head, slightly apologetic,
"But I'm really not very skilled—just a shallow understanding. And this is all clan-secret knowledge. My grandfather strictly warned me not to talk about it…"
Mo Hua's expression turned thoughtful, his mind racing.
Seeing this, Xie Ling thought he had upset Mo Hua and quickly said:
"But Little Senior Brother, if you ever visit Gen Prefecture's Qiongyin Mountain region, you're welcome at our Xie Clan. I don't have the authority to share these secret arts, but if Grandfather approves, maybe… just maybe…"
Mo Hua's eyes turned solemn as he nodded deeply:
"Alright."
Gen Prefecture, Qiongyin Mountain Region…
Mo Hua etched this place firmly into his memory.
After that, whenever Xie Ling had questions or ran into challenges while doing bounty missions, he would visit the disciples' dining hall during meals, offer up a chicken leg, and ask Mo Hua for advice.
And Mo Hua—having an almost unreasonable amount of bounty-hunting experience—was the perfect person to ask.
Even the Fire Buddha had fallen into his hands. Catching these "small fry" criminals was practically routine for him.
So whenever Xie Ling asked, Mo Hua always had a solid answer.
With Mo Hua's guidance—paired with matching formations and spiritual tools—Xie Ling's bounty missions went extremely smoothly, and his efficiency soared.
He came to deeply admire Mo Hua.
Despite being so young, he was incredibly knowledgeable, especially in formations. He was always thinking ahead, meticulous in planning, and treated others warmly and sincerely.
No wonder Elder Xun had chosen him as the "Little Senior Brother."
No matter how difficult the bounty, as long as you followed Little Senior Brother's instructions to the letter, it usually went off without a hitch—with far less risk.
At that point, "Little Senior Brother" was less a peer and more like the sect's kindly old grandmaster.
From then on, Xie Ling couldn't help but boast about Mo Hua to everyone.
Thanks to that, as soon as Mo Hua sat down in the dining hall, it wouldn't be long before a disciple came over, bowed politely, and said:
"Little Senior Brother!"
"I have a request."
"I want to buy a spiritual tool…"
"There's a rogue cultivator I just can't catch…"
"Please guide me, Little Senior Brother…"
Some of these disciples were familiar faces, others strangers.
Mo Hua treated them all equally, answering their questions with patience.
The tools they needed were wildly varied—from divining compasses for detection, spirit mirrors to break illusions, armor for defense against spells, blades, and fists, to weapons that pierced armor, caused bleeding, or dealt elemental damage.
Mo Hua designed forging formation diagrams based on each request, and Master Gu crafted the final products.
But that soon led to a problem—
Mo Hua couldn't keep up with the workload.
Designing forging diagrams was fine—since it was formation-related, it was also a learning opportunity.
But the other tedious parts—especially selling spiritual tools, setting prices, calculating costs, handling deliveries—were a huge waste of time.
So Mo Hua thought it over and came up with a plan.
During the next ten-day break, he approached Master Gu and asked:
"Master Gu, does the Gu Clan have any merchant buildings, marketplaces, or storefronts in Great Void City?"
Master Gu was taken aback.
"Young Master, are you saying...?"
Mo Hua said,
"Just take all the custom-made spiritual tools and sell them in the shop. Whether it makes a lot or a little profit, you can calculate that yourselves."
While earning spirit stones was nice, he had more important things to do now.
And the spirit stones he did earn—he intended to use to support Master Gu and his people.
Especially those impoverished artificers in the Lone Mountain Forging Hall.
For Mo Hua, applying his formation knowledge in practical ways, combining theory and action, and deepening his understanding of formations—that was enough.
He had no real desire to earn a bunch of spirit stones from this.
He hadn't asked Wenren Wan for help, because he knew Aunt Wan had her own difficulties. There was no need to trouble her over something so small.
Master Gu's heart trembled slightly. He immediately said,
"I'll go ask around."
Though he was a Golden Core cultivator of the Gu Clan, he was mainly in charge of the forging hall and wasn't too familiar with the business side of things.
But even he knew this might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Master Gu tapped into some of his connections, found out the details, and reported back to Mo Hua:
"Near the Great Void Sect, inside Great Void City, the Gu Clan doesn't own much—just a single merchant building."
"This merchant hall doesn't earn much, so it sells a bit of everything—pills, tools, formations—whatever brings in a little profit."
"I've still got some pull within the clan, so I arranged for someone to put the custom-made spiritual tools there for sale."
"The merchant hall will take a ten-percent cut from the profits."
Mo Hua nodded.
Though truth be told, he wasn't well-versed in the whole business side of things.
He just handed it off to Master Gu to take care of. That was good enough for him.
And with that, the matter was more or less settled.
But even though Mo Hua hadn't said anything—Wenren Wan still found out.
Near the Qianxue region, the cultivation-related businesses jointly run by the Gu and Wenren Clans were mostly managed by Wenren Wan.
Previously, some forging halls and merchant pavilions had been owned by the Shangguan Clan.
But those had been reclaimed by the Shangguans and leased out to the Shen Clan instead.
That had been Shangguan Ce's decision, and Wenren Wan couldn't do much about it.
Still, other cultivation industries jointly held by the Wenren and Gu families were still in her hands.
So when Master Gu started poking around inside the Gu Clan about merchant halls, those ripples naturally didn't escape her notice.
In fact, Master Gu being able to use his connections and arrange for the spiritual tools to be sold in the merchant hall—was only possible because Wenren Wan had given her approval.
She had agreed for Mo Hua's sake.
Otherwise, in an immortal city like Great Void City, located right next to a top-tier sect, even renting a storefront would cost an outrageous amount of spirit stones.
That kind of cost was something Master Gu might not even be able to afford.
The ten-percent cut? That was Wenren Wan's decision too.
She had set that aside for Mo Hua.
Wenren Wan was worried Mo Hua might get taken advantage of in business dealings with Master Gu, so she arranged to skim ten percent directly from the merchant hall—thinking that even if the tools didn't sell and the business flopped, at least she had quietly reserved a portion of the earnings for Mo Hua, so he wouldn't suffer a total loss.
And so, things were settled. From then on, all the custom spiritual tools were sold through the Gu Clan's merchant hall.
Mo Hua washed his hands of the business and went back to a relaxed life.
As more disciples received his "guidance," more came to buy spiritual tools, and more became connected to him.
His network within the Great Void Sect grew ever wider.
From the sect's old patriarchs, to teaching elders, to senior brothers and sisters from previous intakes, down to his fellow disciples—Mo Hua had acquaintances everywhere.
Especially among his peers, Mo Hua held real authority.
"If you're unsure about something, ask Little Senior Brother"—this had basically become a rule of thumb.
Even in the dining hall, more and more disciples began "pledging allegiance."
The supply of chicken drumsticks in the canteen was starting to run dangerously low...
(End of Chapter)